> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.paxton.ai/help/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.paxton.ai/help/matters/using-matters-in-paxton.md).
# Using Matters in Paxton
Your **matter** sits at the center of everything you do in Paxton. Chats, documents, drafts, and the record you build from them all live inside the matter they belong to. This article explains the model, what each part of a matter does, and how to find work that was created before matters existed.
#### What a matter is
A matter is the container for a single client or case. Everything you do in Paxton — every conversation, every uploaded document, every Medical Chronology — belongs to a matter. Grouping work this way keeps each client's materials separate and makes it harder to accidentally mix files or chats across cases.
A matter also carries context that Paxton uses on every question you ask: the jurisdiction shown under the matter name, the documents in Matter Files, and the drafts and chats already produced. That's why you don't have to re-attach files or restate the jurisdiction each time you start a conversation.
#### Inside a matter
Open a matter and the left sidebar takes you to its parts:
* **Back to all matters** — return to your matters list
* **Matter Overview** — the at-a-glance summary: skills, files, drafts, chat history, and collaborators
* **Matter Files** — the organized file structure, including folders such as Medical Chronology folders
* **Matter Record** — structured outputs built from the matter's files: Matter Timeline, Medical Chronologies, and Billing Summaries
* **Chat History** — **New Chat**, plus every past conversation in this matter
#### Starting a conversation
To ask Paxton something about this matter, select **Chat** at the top right, or **New Chat** under **Chat History** in the left sidebar. The conversation opens scoped to the current matter and can draw on its files, jurisdiction, and built-in legal research from the first message.
See [Conversations with Paxton](https://help.paxton.ai/help/ai-assistant/using-the-ai-assistant) for what you can ask and how context works.
The sections you'll spend the most time in have their own articles:
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